A proposal made today by a Hamilton County commissioner involving sewer work related to the city of Cincinnati's planned streetcar system won't harm or delay the project, city staffers said.

That's because the motion introduced by County Commissioner Chris Monzel, a streetcar foe, would only affect additional improvements sought by the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD), said Chris Eilerman, the city's streetcar project manager. The city already has allocated $3 million of its own money to relocate manholes needed for the streetcar project and do some of MSD's other improvements.

A media furor has erupted over a “newly released” letter to Pope Paul VI that indicates he and the Vatican knew about child sexual abuse by priests almost 50 years ago.

News accounts report the 1963 letter was released by attorneys in California who represented sexual abuse victims in the Los Angeles Diocese. In fact, those same attorneys have previously released numerous damning documents that got little media attention until now.

Agency authorized 36 permits in June, up from 20 in May

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) is not being slowed down by critics of hydraulic fracturing. ODNR in June authorized 36 new permits for horizontal drilling wells used for the process also known as fracking, a record for ODNR, according to Friday's Hannah Report.

Carroll County was at the top of obtaining new permits with 11 total. Columbiana County followed with seven new permits, and Harrison County was third with nine. Chesapeake Energy Corporation obtained most of those permits, a total of 22.

CityBeat spoke with Carroll County Commissioner Jeffrey Ohler, a Republican, in June about the impact of fracking on his county. Ohler was generally skeptical of how many domestic jobs fracking had created in the county, and he said he was cautious about the long-term economic impact the influx of fracking activity could have in the area.

Critics claim fracking is too dangerous and its risks are too unclear. In a June 17 rally, environmentalist group Don’t Frack Ohio took over the Columbus statehouse asking state officials to put a stop to fracking. More than 1,000 attended the rally, according to the organization.

But some state officials, including Gov. John Kasich, say the process can be safe with regulations in place. In June, Kasich signed into law S.B. 315, which added new rules and regulations to the fracking process. Following that, Kasich signed an executive order on July 12 that strengthened state regulators with the ability to stop and impose new requirements on wastewater injection wells deemed risky or dangerous.

Fracking is a process in which millions of gallons of water are pumped underground to release oil and gas from rock formations. The water is then recycled and deposited in underground facilities known as wastewater injection wells.

Facing term limits, Cincinnati City Councilman John Cranley announced today that he would resign his seat Thursday to join the Keating Muething & Klekamp law firm and concentrate on development projects in East Price Hill.

Debates to take place after Sept. 10 primary; Berns withdrawing in protest

Independent mayoral candidate Sandra “Queen” Noble sent an F-bomb-laden email to mayoral debate organizers and Libertarian Jim Berns quit the race in protest of news that two mayoral debates hosted by The Cincinnati Enquirer and WCPO will take place after the primary election.

Under the current primary system, multiple mayoral
candidates are allowed to run. But come Sept. 10, voters will select the
top two contenders in a primary. Those frontrunners will then face off in a final
election on Nov. 5 to pick who will take over City Hall on Dec. 1.

Noble, who’s known for being eccentric and running for public office multiple times but never being elected, began the chain of events with an explicit email.

“Fuck you man. The two motherfuckers burn,” Noble wrote in
a July 30 email to mayoral debate organizers. “Queen Noble is being
robbed of the elections thanks to motherfucker such as yourself seeing
the future and shit. The fuck you mean debate after the election robbing
primary. It's a rip off for the incumbents in it self (sic). Dirty
motherfuckers are backed by dirty motherfuckers cheating the public out
the best candidates so fuck you and the primary election. Queen Noble
will debate now asshole.”

Berns replied in his own July 30 email, “Queen Noble is
right. The September 10th Top Two Primary's only purpose is to cheat the
public out of the best candidates for Mayor of Cincinnati.”

Today, Berns announced he’s withdrawing from the race in protest of the primary.

The criticism isn’t new to local politics. Berns has been
vocally critical of the primary process ever since the mayoral
campaigns, media outlets and other interested parties began meeting early in the year to
set up the debates.

Supporters of the primary system say it helps narrow down
the field so voters can better evaluate and scrutinize the frontrunners.
Some also claim it positively extends the electoral process, so voters
are forced to think about their choice for mayor from the primary in
September to the election in November.

Berns argues the primary system favors establishment
candidates, especially when media outlets fail to cover campaign events
and debates prior to the primary vote. He also says the $350,000 to
$400,000 it costs the city to hold the primary is a waste of money, and
voters should instead choose from a full pool of candidates in November.

The criticisms are further accentuated by how media outlets cover the election, which affects how the public and organizations that endorse candidates learn about them. It’s rare a media outlet or local organization wants to
host a debate, especially a televised debate, before the primary, and
it’s even rarer the debate involves more than the two expected
frontrunners.

But that gives the most publicity to those who lead the
race from the start. Not only do the top two contenders get to
participate in a televised debate, but media outlets also tend to give
much more coverage to the candidates they know are going to
appear on television.

This year, the expected contenders are Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls and ex-Councilman John Cranley,
two Democrats. Both have said they support the primary system, although
Cranley has stated he supports moving the date so it coincides with
countywide or statewide elections earlier in the year.

Cincinnati has directly elected its mayors since 2001.
Since then, the primary system has been necessary twice. The other
mayoral elections involved only two candidates.

Until 2001, the mayor was the City Council candidate who got the most votes.

Plaintiffs: Out-of-state same-sex marriages must be treated equally

A gay couple living in Ohio has filed a lawsuit today against the state of Ohio for failing to recognize their Maryland-certified same-sex marriage, which they claim is discriminatory because the state is required to recognize any certified heterosexual marriage from another state as valid.

Jim Obergefell and John Arthur, who suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive and disabling neurological disease that causes muscles to rapidly deteriorate, traveled to Maryland last week to officially tie the knot after remaining as partners for 20 years, reports Cincinnati.com. The trip reportedly cost nearly $13,000 for a chartered, medically-equipped plane, all of which was sourced by donations from friends and family.

Arthur, 47, is a bed-ridden hospice patient and was diagnosed with ALS in 2011.

In a press release from Gerhardstein & Branch, the legal association representing the couple, Obergefell stated that not recognizing Arthur's marriage on his death certificate, when the time comes, would be unconstitutional. "It is the final record of a citizen's life. It must be accurate. We hope that this can be one small step toward making marriage equality a reality in Ohio and perhaps all 50 states," he noted.

Attorney Al Gerhardstein, who is representing Arthur and Obergefell, cites the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection clause, noting that the Supreme Court's historic overturn of DOMA has stripped states of the right to discriminate against couples who seek same-sex marriages.

"John and James were validly married in Maryland. If they were an opposite sex couple, Ohio would recognize their marriage. Being a same-sex couple is no longer a good enough reason to deny them equal rights.”

As an example, he explains that should two first cousins fall in love in the state of Ohio, they can't be wed in Ohio and have their union recognized; however, should they travel to Georgia, where marrying your first cousin is legal, they could come back to Ohio and have a recognizable union under state law, enjoying the same benefits as any other heterosexual married couple in Ohio. The same rules would follow for other stipulations prohibited under Ohio law, such as getting married underage in another state where the union would be legal.

Defense attorneys Terry Nester and Bridget Koontz were not available for comment. CityBeat will update this story with any changes.

Gerhardstein told CityBeat that the plaintiffs will go before U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Black on Monday, July 22, to ask for an expedited ruling in light of Arthur's rapidly deteriorating condition.

"Had the Supreme Court made this decision one year ago, this would have been as simple as us taking a trip because I could still walk. It's the progression for me of the ALS, it's...it's just compounded everything," he told Cincinnati.com camera crews earlier this week.

Maya Angelou, other activists encourage justice without hate

Panelists including the parents of slain Florida teenager
Trayvon Martin talked about reconciliation and turning personal
suffering into power at the National and Racial Healing Town Hall at the
Duke Energy Convention Center on Wednesday during the Children’s
Defense Fund National Conference.

Tracy Martin, Trayvon’s father, broke down in tears as he
told the story of how his son saved his life by dragging him out of
their condo and calling 911 after Tracy had been badly burned in a
grease fire.

“My child is my hero,” Tracy Martin said. “He saved my life. Not to be there to save his is troublesome to me.”

Trayvon Martin was shot and killed on Feb. 26 in Sanford, Fla. by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman.

Trayvon, who was black, was unarmed and shot by the white
and Hispanic Zimmerman after Zimmerman pursued him in defiance of a
request by a police dispatcher. Zimmerman claims the shooting was in
self-defense.

Zimmerman is out on $1 million bail while awaiting trial on a charge of second degree murder.

“Nothing anyone can do will bring Trayvon back,” Tracy
Martin said. “You have to take that negative and turn it into a
positive. We chose to keep our son's name alive and not let his death be
in vain.”

The town hall-style meeting was kicked off by poet and
author Maya Angelou. She urged the hundreds of people in attendance,
mostly young and black, to demand justice for Trayvon — referring to
Zimmerman as “the brute” — but “that means we don’t become poisoned by
hate.”

Angelou wasn’t the only one who urged against hate.

Black historian and civil rights activist Vincent Harding,
who celebrated his 81st birthday on Wednesday, issued a challenge to
the youth in attendance:

“Are you ready to fight for the healing of George
Zimmerman and all the George Zimmermans of America? Are you up to that?”
he asked.

“This country has no chance unless they are healed.”

The panel was made up of social activists, many of whom
had lost friends and family to violence or bigotry, but whose pain
prompted activism instead of retaliation — panelists such as The Rev.
Ronald and Kim Odom, who lost a son to gun violence but volunteer in
intervention and outreach programs; Clemmie Greenlee, a former
prostitute and gang member who formed a peacemaking organization to work
with gang members after her son was killed; and Ndume Olatushani, a
former prisoner who was released in June after 19 years on death row
after being falsely convicted of murdering a Tennessee shopkeeper.

The younger members of the audience were encouraged to ask
questions after the panel presentation. Teenagers and young adults from
as far as Tennessee, North Carolina and Minnesota asked questions about
dismantling the system of racial oppression, overcoming odds stacked
against young minorities and having society see past an old felony
conviction.

The panelists all tried to offer encouragement, while
urging the younger generation to continue to try to fight to make things
better.

“When you look at the odds, it’s so horrific for a young
minority American, you say ‘why even try, why even bother?’ ” said
Benjamin Crump, a civil rights attorney who is representing Trayvon’s
mother Sabryna Fulton. “But the reason you try and you bother, there is
so many examples where we beat the odds every day and nobody even know
about it or talked about it.”

“It goes back to you and saying, ‘I am going to make
something of myself. I don’t care about the statistics, I don’t care
about the odds.’ … You say, ‘well, if it’s one out of a million, I’m
going to be that one.’”

As other states come under fire, Ohio hints at voter ID law

It seems Ohio may soon get a controversial voter ID law.
While speaking at a Tea Party event in Cincinnati on Monday, Secretary of State
Jon Husted said the General Assembly is likely to take up a voter ID law
after the November election.

“I was listening to a show one night where they talked
about these onerous rules, these onerous photo ID rules and the onerous
rules in Ohio on photo ID,” he said. “Well, the photo ID law in Ohio is
not onerous. As a matter of fact, I suspect the General Assembly will
take up a more strict version of what we have after what we’ve been
through with this election process.”

Later on, an audience member commented on the issue by
pointing out Ohioans can currently identify themselves with 12 different
types of ID. In response, Husted clarified his position: “We need to
streamline that because it’s really hard for a poll worker to know
exactly what they’re supposed to be checking. And I’m quite confident
the legislature is going to take that issue up.”

Under current Ohio law, voters can go to the polls with
state ID cards, driver’s licenses, military IDs, utility bills,
paychecks, bank statements and other forms of ID. Republicans have sometimes
criticized the many options, particularly for not being state-issued and not requiring a photo.

Democrats criticize ID laws for suppressing voters. A study from researchers
at the University of Chicago and Washington University in St. Louis
found nearly 700,000 young, minority voters will be unable to
cast a ballot due to voter ID laws. Both young and minority voters tend
to side with Democrats.

Republicans say the laws are necessary to protect elections from
voter fraud. However, studies suggest in-person voter fraud is not a
serious, widespread issue. A News21 report, a Carnegie-Knight
investigative reporting project that looked at national public records,
found 10 cases of alleged in-person voter fraud since 2000. That’s less
than one case a year nationwide.

The audio clips from the event, which was provided by the Ohio Democratic Party, can be heard here and here.

Husted’s office could not be immediately reached for comment. This story will be updated if a comment becomes available.

UPDATE (4:25 P.M.): Matt McClellan, spokesperson for Husted, called CityBeat after this story was published.

"The Tea Party has generally been critical of the secretary's position on voter ID," he said, referring to Husted's past opposition of strict voter ID laws. "The comments he made at the event last night were environmental in general about what the secretary thought had been happening at the statehouse. His position, in general, is unchanged."

When pressed about what Husted meant when he advocated for "streamlining" laws, McClellan said Husted supported "simplification" of the current system. McClellan could not offer more details on what that means, and he said specifics would be up to the legislature to decide.

Chris Redfern, Ohio Democratic Party chairman, responded to Husted’s suggestions in a statement: “As
if Secretary of State Husted has not done enough to undermine access to
Ohio’s polls, now he’s planning a secret post-Election Day assault on
what forms of identification voters can present to cast a ballot. It’s
no surprise that after slashing voting access across the state, using
his office for partisan advantage, and lying about Issue 2, now Husted
is making plans to create obstacles for African Americans and seniors to
vote.”

CityBeat first wrote about the Springboro Tea Party last month, detailing the agenda for a rally planned Saturday that’s heavy with speakers from the John Birch Society and movies about far-right conspiracy theories.

Now the Tea Party leader organizing the event, Brian “Sonny” Thomas, is under fire for racist and vulgar comments he posted on Twitter, which has prompted several politicians to cancel their appearances at the rally.